


The Very Best Medicine

by Dwparsnip



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Minor Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-04 04:44:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16340069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dwparsnip/pseuds/Dwparsnip
Summary: Nicole tries to do something special for Waverly that backfires. Allergic to geoduck? Really?





	The Very Best Medicine

**Author's Note:**

> The usual legalese here: I don't own these lovely ladies or the universe in which they dwell. They were created by the awesome Beau Smith.  
> Based on what Waverly told Nicole about what she wanted to do in Nedley's office in "Bury Me with My Guns On".  
> Not sure where what time frame I'd put it in, sometime before Season 3 finale I guess, after Nicole becomes sheriff.  
> Not run through a beta so all boo-boos are my responsibility.

Waverly pulled her jeep into Nicole's driveway, parking alongside her sheriff's cruiser in case Nicole had to make a quick getaway in the line of duty. She dearly hoped with all of her heart and soul that that would not happen tonight. Quiet nights for her and the lawperson who had managed to steal her heart so easily were few and far in between these days. 

They were so overdue for a night to themselves it wasn't funny to the point where she wondered if the cosmos was trying to mess with them. She let loose a deep sigh as she stepped out of her toasty jeep and into the crisp evening air. She started walking up to Nicole's house and a shiver slithered up and then down her spine that had nothing to do with current atmospheric conditions and everything to do with the red headed bombshell waiting for her inside.

Of course, all it ever took was the briefest of thoughts of Nicole flitting through her always busy mind to get her warm blood to turn into lava, red hot magma pumped by her heart to her brain, limbs, breasts, thighs... 

She came to a stop and her eyes focused on the door a mere few feet away from her, causing her brow to crease in awe of the fact that she'd walked the last five feet in a love induced daze. 

And she had managed to do it without bodily injury. 

Her gaze was quickly diverted up to the back lit window of the door. Through the curtain Nicole always had up to the window, she saw the familiar chest up silhouette of Nicole walk by, and the strong pitter patter of her heart instantly strengthened into a thunderous runaway freight train. 

The silhouette moved away from the door, and even though there had been no physical contact what so ever, she instantly felt an almost breath taking sense of loss. She stood there in the dull twilight and took several deep breaths, not only trying to calm her racing heart but reminding her body that Nicole was still there on the other side of the door.

Waverly took one more deep breath and then quickly closed the short distance to the door. The knob was cool against the skin of her hand, but she didn't feel it, not with her veins still ablaze. She opened the door and stepped into the dimly lit living room, closing the door behind her and then toeing off her shoes and pushing them into their accustomed place next to Nicole's. 

“Wave?” called that beautiful voice from the kitchen. 

Waverly's face erupted into a giddy grin as she removed her coat. “It's me, baby,” she replied as she hung her coat on the hook next to the door, careful not to knock down the white Stetson that hung on the next hook over. 

She started making her way towards the kitchen, but paused to reach down and give Calamity Jane a scratch behind her ears as the feline stretched along the back of the couch. She smiled at her four legged friend and then looked up into the kitchen, and when she did her fingers stilled in Calamity’s fur as she took in the sight before her.

Nicole was at the sink facing away from her, and while Waverly couldn't specifically see what her girlfriend was doing, the running water she could hear told her Nicole was possibly cleaning something. Her eyes raked over her lover, starting at her white sock covered feet and moving oh so slowly upward along blue jean covered calves, knees and thighs. Here her breath hitched at the way the jeans hugged Nicole’s curves, and she nearly gasped when Nicole shifted so that most of her weight rested on her left leg giving a little sway to those scrumptious hips. Waverly reluctantly tore her gaze from Nicole’s shapely derriere and found a gray shirt hiding Nicole’s back from her. Experience told Waverly it was one of Nicole’s favorite Purgatory Sheriff Department tee-shirts, the one that was so tight that she only wore it at home, and even then only when she knew she was going to be alone or that Waverly would be there. Never when company was there or expected to come. 

Like tonight. 

Waverly gave Calamity Jane one last scratch, her longing to touch Nicole too strong to be ignored for even one more second. She moved around the table that had been there for as long as Waverly had known Nicole, and stopped directly behind and mere inches away from the taller woman. Her hands reached over and settled on Nicole’s hips, and she felt Nicole’s small jump and surprised gasp all the way down into that special deepest recess of her belly that was reserved for Nicole and Nicole alone.

Waverly edged in closer and a little to her left so that her pelvic area melded against Nicole’s firm left ass cheek. She stretched enough to be able to lay her head against Nicole’s shoulder and said, “Hey you.” 

The corners of Nicole’s mouth danced upward to give Waverly a beautiful smile, adorable dimple on full and bright display. “Hey to you, too.” Nicole leaned over enough to give Waverly a kiss on the side of her head and added, “How was your day?” 

Waverly heard Nicole speaking, but she couldn’t for the life of her understand what she had said. Instead, her attention was focused on Nicole’s hands, still being held out over the sink with and odd looking object in them. 

Waverly felt Nicole’s shoulder gently nudge her noggin and she moved more to her left to stand next to Nicole, her right hand coming to rest on the small of her love’s back and the other hand finding the edge of the counter.

“Nicole?” she said, her voice full of awe. “Is that a geoduck in your hand or are you just happy...” She looked up to see that Nicole was looking at her, knowing smirk firmly in place and full out laughter making her russet eyes nearly glow. She cleared her throat and said in more of an embarrassed mumble than anything else, “Or are you just happy to see me?” 

Nicole finally laughed out loud, filling the kitchen with the music that always made Waverly’s heart sing a little.

“Both, actually,” Nicole said with another chuckle before leaning down and giving Waverly a quick kiss. 

Waverly wanted to follow that kiss up with another, and then another but her curiosity, which had served her so well in the past, reared its ugly head and compelled her to ask as she leaned in closer to examine the specimen in Nicole’s hands, “Where did you get this?”

Nicole waited another second and then answered. “You know I had to go to the Big City today, right?” Waverly nodded, and when it seemed as though she still hadn’t put two and two together Nicole added with an amused lilt in her voice, “So I picked some up on the way back.” 

Waverly leaned back and turned so that she could look into those beautiful brown orbs she dearly adored. “You remembered?” 

Nicole smiled again, but then her eyes narrowed in mock frustration as she said playfully, “You’re so proud of remembering every little detail about us,” her eyes narrowed another millimetre and she added in an impish whisper, “but you’re always surprised when I show you that I remember everything, too.” 

Nicole was right, of course, and Waverly felt the heat explode on her cheeks in response. She conceded the point to Nicole with a bright smile who returned the gesture without hesitation. 

“Wanna help?” 

Waverly gave Nicole a confused look who, instead of verbalizing what she had meant, eased back from the counter and lifted her left arm up so that Waverly could slide into the empty space in front of her. 

Waverly paused though not for any reason that was negative in any way shape or form. No, she hesitated because she was caught up in a memory of a couple of weeks earlier when Nicole had pinned her between her athletic body and the counter, only it had been early in the morning and they’d had a lot less clothing on. 

After a few more heartbeats she slipped in between Nicole and the counter, then sighed contentedly as Nicole’s body pressed perfectly against her and Nicole wrapped her arms around her. 

“So I did some research and asked some people in the Big City,” Nicole said softly into Waverly’s right ear, her voice thick with love and desire. She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat and said with a little more clarity, “and this is what we need.”

“Geoduck, of course,” said Nicole as she held the big clam up in front of them, the siphon part of it pointing upward and to the left. “Some boiling water and some cold salt water,” added Nicole and Waverly’s eyes looked onto the counter space to their right where several items lay waiting including the mentioned two bowls of water, one that had steam rising from it and one that didn’t. “Cutting board, knives, lemon, chives, olive oil, bread crumbs, sea salt and eggs.” Nicole pressed a little harder against Waverly causing the shorter woman to gasp and then gently bite her lower lip when Nicole’s lips moved against her ear. “Ready?”

Waverly nearly whimpered when Nicole eased off of her, but that sense of loss was quickly relieved by the jolt of electricity she felt on her left hip when Nicole’s hand landed on it. Nicole applied enough pressure on her hip to get her to move to the right so that most of the items Nicole had listed off a few moments earlier was directly in front of them. 

Nicole’s right arm had wound around and above Waverly’s, but when she snaked her other arm around Waverly she slipped it underneath Waverly’s arm so that her girlfriend could rest her hand upon hers, which she did without being told. 

Nicole transferred the geoduck from her right hand to other so that they were both holding it with the unhinged side of the clam facing towards the right. Nicole reached over and picked up a large, razor sharp knife she’d put on the counter earlier and inserted the pointy tip into the clam.                                                                      

“The trick, apparently,” she said as she repeatedly withdrew and inserted the blade with short, careful and precise strokes, “is to cut along the shell so that we can get all the meat inside.” After cutting along one side of the shell, she did the same to the other side and replaced the knife onto the cutting board. 

Waverly had watched those strong, dextrous hands do a lot of things since they’d been together. She’d certainly felt those slender, nimble fingers do amazingly wonderful things to her many times before. So why did it surprise her and make her feel bubbly on the inside to see Nicole do this? 

“Do you want to open the shell,” Nicole said next to her ear, “or scoop out the meat?”

“What?” Waverly managed to squeak out, causing Nicole to chuckle in her ear.

Waverly’s attention refocused on Nicole’s hands as she opened the clam to reveal the inside. Nicole turned her left hand palm up to hold the shell as her other hand scraped and scooped the meat out of its former safe haven. She moved her hand over to drop the shell into the sink for later disposal, and then lay the geoduck on the cutting board. 

For a moment they just looked at it, a comfortable silence encasing them from head to toe. 

“There’s a,” Nicole cleared her throat, “covering over the, ah, the...”

“Shaft?” supplied Waverly, her brain taking a second too long to catch up to her mouth, and when it finally did her cheeks burned so badly she was tempted to splash some of the cold water on her face.

“Siphon,” answered Nicole, her voice betraying her amusement with Waverly’s response.

Waverly nodded, not trusting herself to say anything else at that particular moment. 

Nicole reached down and picked the geoduck up and said as she eased the long siphon into the bowl of steaming water, “If we put this in here for twenty seconds or so, it should be easy to peel off.”

Waverly closed her eyes and leaned her head back onto Nicole’s shoulder, her feelings for this amazing woman doing this simple yet incredible thing for her consuming her for a moment. 

“Wave?” 

Waverly opened her eyes and reluctantly eased her head from Nicole’s shoulder to find herself at eye level with the geoduck. 

Nicole reached up and took the tip of the siphon in her fingers to hold out horizontally straight. “See to the right where the skin is starting to peel?” When Waverly nodded she said, “Grab that and peel it off towards the...tip.” 

Waverly did as Nicole told her. It felt a little weird, but once she managed to nip the peeling skin between her fingers she managed to pull it off without any difficulty. What did surprise her after the covering was totally removed was that it was longer, way longer, than the sha...siphon itself. She tossed the covering into the sink on top of the shell and then placed both her hands on the edge of the counter.

Nicole set the geoduck back on the cutting board and picked the knife up again. “The siphon is crunchy,” said Nicole as she sliced through it, separating the siphon from the meatier part, “and is usually eaten raw.” She carefully cut the siphon along its length so that when she was done she had two long, half circle shaped pieces. “After we clean them in the salt water.” She picked up both pieces and put them in the bowl with the cold water and thoroughly cleaned the pieces before taking them out and setting them on a clean part of the cutting board. She retrieved the knife, and after wiping it in a towel she sliced up both pieces of the siphon into bite sized pieces and then put the knife back down. She reached over and took a lemon in her hands and used a smaller knife to slice it in half, then took one half and held it above the pieces and squeezed so that juice drizzled down on the pieces. Satisfied with that, Nicole pinched some sea salt between her fingers and deposited a small amount on the geoduck , then did the same with some chives. She wiped her fingers off in the towel and then picked up the olive oil, poured a slight amount over it all and placed the oil back on the counter. 

“Voila,” she said she leaned into Waverly once again. 

“Wow,” replied Waverly. “So that’s geoduck?” 

“Part of it,” replied Nicole as she nuzzled her nose into Waverly’s hair just above her ear. “The other part is there, too. Do you want to try a piece or wait until it’s all done?” 

“Now,” answered Waverly without taking even a second to think about it. She reached down to pick up a piece, but stopped when Nicole’s hand playfully tapped her hand away. 

Nicole eased away from Waverly and moved so that she was standing next to Waverly. She reached down and picked a piece of the prepared geoduck between her thumb and index finger and turned to face her girlfriend. When Waverly faced her, Nicole smirked and said, “Open up, baby.” 

Waverly gave the love of her life a crooked smile then languidly opened her mouth. Nicole slipped the geoduck past Waverly’s lips and placed it on her tongue, but before she could move her fingers away Waverly snapped her lips closed on Nicole’s finger. Waverly gazed  intently into Nicole’s slightly widened eyes as she gently sucked on the redhead’s finger, registering with some ecstasy the way Nicole’s pupils dilated and her mouth parted just enough to draw in some quick, shaky breaths. Waverly continued a gentle sucking on Nicole’s finger as Nicole slowly slid it out of her mouth so that there was a slight popping sound when the finger finally exited the warmth of Waverly’s mouth. 

They both smiled and Nicole cleared her throat as Waverly started to chew on the geoduck. Nicole had been right. It was crunchy, but not unpleasantly so and sweet...it was surprisingly sweet. 

“You like?” asked Nicole, her head tilted to the right and a wide dimpled smile on her face. 

Waverly nodded as she continued to chew. It did taste good, but something wasn’t right. She felt as though clay was slowly seeping into and clogging her throat making it hard to breathe. 

She stopped chewing and looked at Nicole, whose smile had disappeared to be replaced with something that looked like utter fear. 

It was then that her vision started to blur, Nicole’s worried face suddenly mixing with the background until all she could see was one big blurry kaleidoscope of shapes and colors that didn’t make sense. Her knees wobbled and she suddenly felt Nicole’s strong hands grip her upper arms. She couldn’t be certain, but she thought she heard Nicole’s voice frantically calling her name. 

She lurched forward and she felt Nicole’s arm snap around her waist and then she felt the oddest thing. Something was in her mouth, something long and with a sharp end. She felt it dig into her tongue, then the roof of her mouth and then under her tongue and along her cheeks. She tasted the telltale flavor of copper in her mouth, then whatever she’d been chewing- what had she been eating again?- was gone along with the long pointy thing. 

Her head flopped forward, her chin digging into her chest for a moment before she felt a God awful shaking and her head bobbing up and down. The last thing she felt before blackness overtook her was an all encompassing chill, like she’d been taken outside...

...then she was swimming, which wasn't terribly unusual. She had learned to swim many moons ago at a young age at one of the local watering holes that Curtis and Gus liked to go to. No, what was more important, and more than a little terrifying, was that she was fully clothed, completely dry and surrounded on all sides by thick, inky blackness. 

Panic started to bubble in her chest, but just as she was about to cry out for help a tiny flash of light appeared in the darkness in front of her. She intrinsically knew in her heart that the light was good and it was safe, so she swam with all her might toward the light

When she finally reached the light she grabbed it with both hands. Suddenly light was everywhere so bright and white that it was almost blinding. She closed her eyes to protect herself and as she did so she heard a voice, _the_ voice, **_her_** voice, and all at once she relaxed because she knew without a shadow of a doubt that because the owner of that voice was there with her, she was safe.

“Come on, Wave,” the voice said to her, and as familiar as the voice was to Waverly there was a hint of fear in it that she knew shouldn’t be there. “You’re okay,” the voice assured her in a softer and steadier cadence. “Just open your eyes.” 

Waverly did as the voice asked, slowly and carefully. It was bright, but not as blinding as it had been the first time. Her lids lifted halfway and she blinked once, and then again. Suddenly a face appeared above her, a face she loved so very much.

“Hey you,” said Nicole with her million watt smile. 

Something wasn’t right though. There was a telltale redness in and puffiness around her eyes and her cheeks were damp. There was no doubt about it: her strong and usually unflappable Nicole had been crying.

Waverly watched as Nicole leaned back a little and she feared for a second that Nicole was leaving. Before she even had the chance to dismiss that panic, it was banished by cold, trembling fingers caressing her cheek and her girlfriend’s other hand, which had been holding her hand apparently, bringing it up to her lips to kiss. Nicole’s lips on the skin of her hand caused her to gasp and Nicole instantly stopped all her movements. 

Nicole’s eyes widened and focused intently on Waverly’s waiting to make certain Waverly was okay. She didn’t dare move until Waverly finally smiled at her a moment later. Nicole released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding in through her nose. “I was scared, Wave,” she whispered with her lips still pressed against Waverly’s hand. “I mean really scared.” 

Waverly tried to wet her dry lips with her tongue and said, “What...” It came out as a rough croak that would have made Kermit the Frog proud. Waverly tried to clear her throat but found it hurt like hell. She tried again as Nicole quickly but gently laid her hand on the bed next to her hip and disappeared. She was only gone for five heartbeats and when she reappeared she had a small paper cup in her hand, complete with bendy straw. 

Nicole manoeuvred the end of the straw to Waverly’s mouth and said as Waverly’s lips parted enough for it to pass into her mouth, “Small sips. Your throat was swollen when I brought you in so it’s going to be sore, okay?”

Waverly took three small sips and the water sliding past her tongue and down her throat felt so good. She pushed the straw out of her mouth with the tip of her tongue and smiled at Nicole. “Thanks,” she said, and while it didn’t hurt quite as much as it did before, it still didn’t sound pretty. “What happened?”

Nicole placed the cup on the table next to the bed and resumed her previous position: leaning against the bed with one hand holding Waverly’s and the other caressing her cheek. “You’re in the hospital. Apparently, Waverly Earp, you’re allergic to geoduck.” Nicole gave her a half grin and added, “Or mollusks in general. And FYI, you can forget about jumping out of a plane and swimming in the ocean.” She brought Waverly’s hand up again and gave it another kiss before setting their combined hands back on the bed again. “With your luck you’d get swarmed by a flock of Canada geese and you’d get kidnapped by a squid or something.”

Waverly smiled at the attempt at humor, but then her eyes narrowed in confusion as she squeezed Nicole’s hand which brought another smile to the redhead’s face. “But I’m not allergic to anything,” she rasped. 

“The fact that Nicole had to bring you here...” announced another familiar voice from the other side of the bed. Waverly turned to see Wynonna standing there with both her hands on the bed rail looking at her with a typical Wynonna smirk upon her lips, “...in the shape you were in blows that theory out of the water, Baby Girl.” 

Waverly blinked and tried to take in a deep breath. “Fudge-nuggets,” she moaned. 

The two most important women to her, one in her life by blood and the other in her life by choice, both laughed at her exclamation, and as the old saying goes laughter is the best medicine and Waverly felt herself getting stronger by the second until their laughter finally died down and something occurred to her. 

She felt a tear slip from her eye and travel a winding path down towards her ear. Her bottom lip trembled as she said with a small sniffle, “I ruined our night. 

Nicole’s eyes shone with love and adoration, the usual brown brightening into something even more beautiful than usual, something that was the very essence of Nicole Haught. “Oh, baby,” she breathed as she leaned in a little closer. “You didn’t ruin anything.” Nicole’s thumb gently brushed the tear from Waverly’s skin and she added, “I’m just so happy you’re going to be okay, and trust me, there will be plenty more nights for us. I promise.” Nicole took in a breath and when she let it slip past her lips it came out with a slight shudder. “I just can’t believe that after all we’ve been through, I could have lost you to a piece of...” She broke off and just stared into Waverly’s eyes.

Waverly studied Nicole for a moment and then smiled at her with all the love and appreciation she could. “You saved me?”

Nicole leaned down and kissed Waverly’s forehead, then edged back and gave her a smile. “I got the geoduck out of your mouth and got you here as fast as I could...” 

“It’s already the stuff of legend, Waves,” interrupted Wynonna, her voice nearly squeaking with giddiness. 

Nicole glared at Wynonna and said warningly, “Wynonna!”

Ignoring Nicole altogether, Wynonna put her left hand on Waverly’s shoulder, and when her little sister looked to her Wynonna gave Waverly her best grin. “Apparently Haught-rod,” she said with an exaggerated nod to Nicole, “tossed you into her cruiser and brought you here, lights glaring and sirens blaring. Old Norm Slater told me that she flew down Main Street so fast that he saw the cruiser go by and it took three or four seconds for the sound of the siren to catch up.”

“Wynonna!” said Nicole with a groan and eye-roll.

“And Harriet Park told me she was sure she saw a trail of flames following the cruiser like it had a rocket up its ass...”

“Wynonna!” Nicole tried a little louder to absolutely no avail. 

“...and even Doc said...” 

Waverly chuckled as Nicole tried again to interrupt, and as her sister and her girlfriend continued their verbal back and forth, she allowed herself to close her eyes and simply listen to them. 

It was, after all, the very best medicine.


End file.
